I Have a Question

Questions of general interest answered for guidance, not as official statements of Church policy

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I need help in praying for and receiving guidance and personal revelation.

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Gaylen Hinton, high councilor, Merced California Stake. The Lord has promised that he will guide us and help us. This is not a privilege reserved only for prophets, seers, and revelators; divine guidance is available to all God’s children, although many do not take advantage of the privilege. In section 42 of the Doctrine and Covenants, the section given as the “law of the Church,” we read the following:

When Oliver Cowdery requested the privilege of translating the Book of Mormon by revelation, he somehow thought the Lord would just show it all to him, but nothing happened. After he failed to receive the expected revelation, the Lord gave him, through the Prophet Joseph Smith, the now-famous formula:

“Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.

“But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.

“But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong.” (D&C 9:7–9.)

Some, in trying to use this formula, have swung the pendulum to the opposite extreme. They think that a person should not even ask the Lord for an answer until he has exhausted the limits of the arm of flesh in studying it out in his own mind. Yet when the Lord gave the formula to Oliver, he was instructing Oliver on how to receive revelations necessary to translate. In translating a document, a confirmation from the Lord would not be sought after the whole job was done, but rather on a phrase-by-phrase, if not word-by-word, basis. Oliver needed to seek answers almost continuously. This sheds a different light on what is meant by “study it out in your mind.”

With this in mind, we should not be afraid to seek answers from the Lord on a frequent basis. We should not be afraid to seek needed answers. (See Moro. 10:5.) We have been commanded, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” (Matt. 7:7.)

Of course, the call to study a matter in our minds does not necessarily mean that the answer already resides there, waiting to be discovered solely by mental effort and then confirmed by the Lord. Often our answers will be less in the form of direct, fresh revelation than in guidance to find those answers that the Lord has already seen fit to reveal to the Church in general through the inspired words of our leaders or in scripture. Also, we may be guided to seek counsel or direction through a friend or through other resources. This preliminary process of information gathering or searching will clarify our thinking and expand our knowledge and thus prepare us to take an informed question to the Lord.

However, the Lord taught a principle to Oliver Cowdery when he counseled him: “Do not ask for that which you ought not.” (D&C 8:10.) He touched upon the theme again when he revealed through Joseph Smith this counsel: “Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you.” (D&C 88:64.)

Some people miss the joys of inquiring of the Lord because they pray in private by emulating what they hear in public prayers. In public prayers we do not ask specific personal questions that need revealed answers. We do not confess our personal sins, share the inner desires of our hearts, or seek the will of God in all things in our lives. In contrast, personal prayers should be more in the spirit of two-way conversations with the Lord.

Some people seldom inquire of the Lord because they have a hard time recognizing the answers. They may not know the difference between a “burning in the bosom” and an emotional high or wishful thinking.

We need to remember that an answer to prayer is a spiritual experience. We need to look for spiritual responses and not physical feelings. These spiritual responses are feelings of peace, joy, and clarity. Such responses may be similar to the warm, glowing feeling that we have in doing a kind deed. Alma tells us that these feelings “will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say within yourselves—It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding, yea, it beginneth to be delicious to me.” (Alma 32:28.)

These calm, sweet, spiritual feelings of peace and joy may also be accompanied by physical feelings of warmth or swelling. But even though such physical feelings may accompany a true answer to prayer, one should be careful about interpreting physical sensations as a witness from God. Physical feelings may be counterfeited or misinterpreted, but there is no substitute for the peace and joy that come from the Lord.

For some, recognizing a “no” answer from the Lord is more difficult than recognizing an affirmative answer, but one ability is just as important as the other. If an affirmative answer is accompanied by peace, then a negative answer would be accompanied by the opposite. Just as the feelings associated with doing something kind and good may be of the same nature as the feelings of a “yes” answer, the feelings accompanying a “no” answer may be familiar also. When someone has done something wrong or hurtful to another, he or she has no peace about it. If he tries to think about his wrongdoing, perhaps he has a heavy, oppressive feeling, even a “stupor of thought” when attempting to think of his deeds.

In the Lord’s formula to Oliver Cowdery, he says that negative answers would bring a “stupor of thought,” something that would make him “forget the thing which is wrong.” (D&C 9:9.) Even though a negative answer to prayer may not cause a person to immediately “forget the thing which is wrong,” the negative feelings will make him unclear of mind.

One thing that will keep us from communicating with our Father, besides not trying, is our own iniquities. Isaiah tells us, “But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” (Isa. 59:2.)

Repentance should be our first item of business as we bow before the Lord. By confessing our sins, seeking the Lord’s forgiveness for our failings, then seeking his help to overcome, we unburden ourselves before the mercy seat. Then, with clean hands and pure hearts, our “confidence [waxes] strong in the presence of God” (D&C 121:45), and we can stand worthy before our Father. In this state, we can communicate with our Father, express our love to him, and feel his love in return. We can pray as did the Nephites in the presence of the Savior: “They did not multiply many words, for it was given unto them what they should pray, and they were filled with desire.” (3 Ne. 19:24.) The Spirit leads us in what to say, and our desires turn from the mundane to the glory of God as our souls reach toward our Father.

Our Heavenly Father wants to communicate with us even more than we want to communicate with him. He wants us to be able to recognize his answers. We are not bothering the Lord when we seek his guidance. He is always happy to communicate with us. Faith, discipline, and concentration are needed to communicate with the Lord; but prayerful communication with our Father in Heaven becomes easier the more we sincerely do it.

[photo] Photo by Matt Reier

How can we feel the joy and rejoicing the scriptures equate with fasting? (See D&C 59:13–19.)

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Lori Robertson, first counselor in the Young Women presidency, Rexburg Seventeenth Ward, Rexburg Idaho Stake. One of the things I looked forward to at the time of my baptism was the opportunity to start fasting with my parents on fast Sundays. Yet there were times in my early teenage years when fasting to me seemed more a burden to be endured than a cause for rejoicing.

On the surface, equating fasting with rejoicing seems contradictory, for our fasts are often prompted by unpleasant or stressful circumstances such as a drought, a less-active or seriously ill loved one, or a pressing need for personal revelation or moral strength. Of course, if we go about fasting the wrong way—having no clear purpose in mind, going without two meals and drink just because that is expected on fast Sundays—the joy of fasting will entirely elude us. We will be “as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance, … that they may appear unto other men to fast” in order to receive a strictly earthly “reward.” (3 Ne. 13:16.) So our challenge is to fast in a manner that includes rejoicing with glad hearts and countenances—even though we may be weighed down by problems or concerns for which we need the Lord’s help. (See D&C 59:14–15; 3 Ne. 13:17–18.) How can we go about this?

Among the benefits of fasting are increased self-control and the knowledge that we can do something that the world considers difficult. President David O. McKay said: “‘He who reigns within himself and rules passions, desires and fears is more than a king.’ If there were no other virtues in fasting but gaining strength of character, that alone would be sufficient justification for its universal acceptance.” (As quoted in Roy Doxey, Latter-day Prophets and the Doctrine and Covenants, 4 vols., Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1978, 3:185.) As we come to know that we can control our passions and appetites, we receive joy.

Another source of joy in fasting is receiving the blessings we are seeking or anticipating those blessings in full confidence. Fasting demonstrates to the Lord that we have a measure of faith in him and that we humbly recognize our dependence on him.

By reading of wonderful examples in the scriptures of efficacious fasts, we can know that our fasting in the proper manner likewise will be rewarded. Because he knew the Lord had answered his prayers, Alma rejoiced when his son, though struck dumb by the Lord, was brought to him. (See Mosiah 27:19–20.) Alma then fasted for two days with a clear purpose: that his son would be restored from his debilitation and that others would “know of the goodness and glory of God.” (Mosiah 27:22–23.)

The fasting and prayers on Alma the Younger’s behalf bore fruit and were a cause of great rejoicing—not only for father and son but also for the other witnesses of that remarkable rebirth. Yet there is always cause for joy during our fasts, for that is when we draw closer to the Lord. The veil can become thin, and humbly we bask in the rich influence of the Spirit, having the sure knowledge that our petitions are more likely to be in harmony with the Lord’s will and that our “performance may be for the welfare of [our] soul” and for others. (2 Ne. 32:9.)

As a youth I participated in special fasts held for sick or injured members of my ward. It increased my testimony of fasting to see so many healed. Whenever I was faced with a major decision, I sought my father’s advice. His advice has always been, “Fast and pray about it.” I cannot remember needing to go to him for further guidance after following that counsel. On one occasion a special family fast was held for my husband when he faced a difficult task. When he succeeded with superior results, we knew the honor belonged to the Lord; our hearts were filled with joy and thanksgiving.

Even if the answers to our prayerful fast are sometimes no, we need not despair. We can still be filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit and feel the joy of knowing the Lord’s will.

No matter the reason for our fasts, we can feel great joy in the presence of the Savior. Jesus taught that the way to have him with us was through fasting. He told the scribes and Pharisees that his disciples did not fast because he was yet with them. But there would come a time, he explained, when he would be gone and his disciples would then have to fast for his presence. (See Luke 5:33–35.)

In D&C 59:13, footnote 13a provides insight into the meaning of the word fasting in that verse: “hungering and thirsting after righteousness.” It is interesting that part of earnestly seeking righteousness is to suppress our physical hunger and thirst and to replace that desire with a fervent spiritual desire. To the Nephites, Jesus said, “Blessed are all they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost.” (3 Ne. 12:6.)

It is being thus filled that causes the soul to rejoice. If there is sorrow, the Lord will provide comfort. He gives answers to our questions and confirms our testimonies. When we approach the Lord in fasting and prayer, we can be of glad countenance because we know that whatever the outcome, we will be blessed with the joy of the Spirit.

When our hearts are full of gratitude for the Lord’s goodness, fasting is an effective way to rejoice in him. Elder Bruce R. McConkie wrote, “[Fasting] is itself a form of the true worship of God.” (Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed., Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1966, p. 276.) On an occasion when the Nephites were again delivered from their enemies, “they gave thanks unto the Lord … and … did fast much and pray much, and they did worship God with exceedingly great joy.” (Alma 45:1.)

We can also feel joy and rejoicing when we give a fast offering. By giving generous fast offerings, we fulfill the Lord’s command to care for the poor and needy among us. I agree with Elder L. Tom Perry, who quoted Elder Marion G. Romney as saying, “You cannot give to the Church and to the building up of the kingdom of God and be … poorer financially.” (Ensign, May 1986, p. 32.) When we are generous, the Lord’s blessings to us increase.

Whenever we fast, it is hoped that we will prepare our hearts with faith to be of glad countenance and to receive the Lord’s Spirit, that our “fasting may be perfect” and our joy full. (D&C 59:13.)